Leather



sfrarrns ern f FE.

BRADFORD ROW E, OF ALBANY,

NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO HIRAH PIERCE AND GEO. E.

CADY.

GRIP FOR HOLDING- LEATHER.

To all 'whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, BRADFORD Rown, of the city of Albany and State of New York, have invented a new and improved grip for holding the ends of leather intended for belting during the process of stretching the same and for similar and analogous purposes, which call Rowes cylindre eccentric grip; and I declare the following specification, with the drawings forming part of the same, to be a full and complete description thereof.

Figure l represents a perspective View of the instrument with a piece of leather fixed in it. Fig. 2 represents a cross section through (L -b, Fig. l.

The principle of construction of the' grip is shown in its simplest form by Fig. 4, which is a cross section, similar in position to Fig. 2, and by Fig. l, leaving out of the figure the back projection marked l, 2, 3, Li. It may be described as a bar of metal c, c, c c, somewhat longer than the width of the leather to be stretched, being in form a cylinder, or a semi-cylinder on a square prism. This has a passage or bore entirely through it, which for nearly its whole length viz. from l to f, is in form three quarters of a cylinder but from c1 to d and f to c2 it is a full cylinder. The. bar is also pierced through in a cross direction by a longitudinal slit -y extending from Z nearly the whole length of the bar, being long enough to receive the width of the widest piece, and wide enough to receive the thickness of the thickest piece of leather for belting, intended to be stretched by the apparatus. The bottom of this slit is on a level with the bottom 3 of the bore of the bar described. This bore forms the chamber for the key of the grip which is shown at Fig. 3. This key is a rod of metal k, fitted to fill up the longitudinal bore of the chamber justdescribed, with a handle m att-ached to or cast on one of its ends. From the handle to o its shape is cylindrical filling the cylindrical part of the bore from c to d (Fig. l) in order to steady its action when turned by its handle.

At the farther end a small part is three quarter cylindrical, and between these points the cylindrical form is cut away, so that when the key is in proper position in its chamber the face of the cut may range with the top of the slit :r y and leave a free passage for the leather that is to be operated upon. The back angle of the rod where the flat and cylindrical surfaces meet, is also cut away at or near a right angle to the flat surface and grooved lengthwise, as shown in profile at s, Figs. 4 and 2.

The operation of the apparatus is plainly shown at Fig. e and is thus: The key being entered into the cylinder' and turned so as to leave a free passage through the same, t-he leather L, L, is entered into the slit and projected through the chamber. The key is then turned from the right to the left, so as to bring the edge at or near s down firmly upon the leather. It will be manifest that every effort to draw the leather from the grip will only tend to turn down the grooved edges of the key more firmly upon it, so that the leather must be broken before it can quit the grip.

The advantage of this machine is that the cylindrical chamber forms such a substantial backing along its whole length for an eccentric key or grip that a key of very small diameter will effect all thaL a verv heavy eccentric supported at the ends alone could do. To secure this purpose more perfectly, and permit the use of a very light apparatus where grips are needed in stretching very broad leather straps or bands, the chamber has the addition shown in Fig. l and in prole in Fig. 2. There it will be seen that instead of the longitudinal slit m-fy passing entirely through the metal and cut-ting off all support to the upper part of the chamber, except at its ends, the slit terminates in a recess a" formed by a continuation of the shell of the chamber, to connect the top and the bottom thereof, but projecting sufficiently from the line of the cylinder to leave room for the end tag of the leather to lie in, and so afford the key an opportunity to take a firm grip on thatI end. This continuation of the metal effectually prevents the top of the cylinder from yielding to the strain or pressure of the grip upon the key, or its being broken thereby.

In Fig. l, l, 2, 3, e represent the projection just described, and the lower part of the chamber is shown extended to the rear in arms and hooks, by which to attach it to the stretching power. ln Fig. 2 the same 'letters show the same projection.

I claim- The construction of a grip composed of a key turning within a socket or chamber, the responding with the cut away part of the l0 key being a solid cylinder, with a portion of key so that when the key is inthe chamber its surface eut away in two faces parallel a strap of leather or other material can pass with its axis, and at an angle with each through the chamber and under the key, as other, one face being grooved lengthwise, described in this speceation.

and the chamber being a hollow cylinder, BRADFORD ROWE. with a portion of its space lled up parallel Witnesses:

with its axis, and having a longitudinal slit J. B. BRINSMADE, Jr.,

through it for nearly its whole length, cor- ANN VAREGK DE WITT. 

